The Barracks

'Marvellous.' Susan Hill, The Times Elizabeth Reegan, after years of freedom - and loneliness - marries into the enclosed Irish village of her upbringing. The children are not her own; her husband is straining to break free from the servile security of the police force; and her own life, threatened by illness, seems to be losing the last vestiges of its purpose. Moving between tragedy and savage comedy, desperation and joy, John McGahern's first novel is one of haunting power. 'The details are evoked with a scrupulous yet enhancing accuracy that reminds one of the young Joyce. He is astonishingly successful in penetrating the mind of a mature woman confronted with pain and death. Mr McGahern is the real thing.' Spectator The iconic debut novel by 'one of the greatest writers of our era' (Hilary Mantel) and 'the Irish novelist everyone should read' (Colm Tóibín). Elizabeth Reegan, after years of freedom - and loneliness - marries into the enclosed Irish village of her upbringing. The children are not her own; her husband is straining to break free from the servile security of the police force; and her own life, threatened by illness, seems to be losing the last vestiges of its purpose. Moving between tragedy and savage comedy, desperation and joy, John McGahern's first novel is one of haunting power. 'Marvellous.' Susan Hill, Times 'Reminds one of the young Joyce.' Spectator 'Wise and compelling ... Elegiac and graceful.' David Mitchell 'I have admired, even loved, John McGahern's work since his first novel.' Melvyn Bragg Elizabeth Regan, after years of freedom - and loneliness - marries into the enclosed Irish village of her upbringing. The children are not her own, and her husband is straining against his job in the police force. Moving between tragedy and savage comedy, desperation and joy, this is a novel of haunting power. This is the first novel by John McGahern, originally published in 1963. Elizabeth Regan, after years of freedom - and loneliness - marries into the enclosed Irish village of her upbringing. The children are not her own; her husband is straining against his job in the police force; and her own life, threatened by illness, seems to be losing the last vestiges of its purpose. Moving between tragedy and savage comedy, desperation and joy, "The Barracks" is a novel of haunting power